I have been told by many people that I tell a good story and so my first book is just that: Me telling my most interesting stories, in my opinion, of people and events during my many travels for work. I have found it a lot harder to tell these stories through the written word than it was to sit on the couch and say to my wife, "Guess what happened on my flight today!" I should have spent more time in high school listening to my English teachers rather than flirting with Barbara Billerbeck. Fortunately, I have some very supportive friends and relatives who were willing to help me. I had three people read my work and correct my grammar even before I felt comfortable enough to send it to a professional to edit. I talked to a prospective editor several times before she could work me into her schedule. I think offering her a bonus of good Norwegian dark chocolate helped win her over. That or she just wanted to put a stop to my relentless calling and emailing.
Now that I have been bitten by the writing bug and my first short book is about to be published, I have started working on two other books. Yes, sometimes I have an issue staying focused on one project at a time. First, I started working on Growing up Me. This book is about my elementary school years from 1967 to 1974. Then from the monthly visits with my Uncle Olaf and our numerous conversations about his youth, I decided to write a book about my father's family and their struggles during the German occupation of Norway. My father passed away 10 years ago, but between all the stories he told me about his youth and talks with Uncle Olaf and Aunt Thelma, my dad's brother and sister, I've become aware of how hard it was for them. Occupied, the story of their struggles, had to be written first.
The goal of my writing, at the very least, is to leave my children a sense of what it was like for their parents and grandparents to grow up when they did and that somehow it may inspire them to write about their lives and keep this going as a family tradition.
